Why Uhuru skipped the German Investment Summit

President Uhuru Kenyatta did not join other 12 other African heads of state for the German Investment Summit which began on Tuesday in Berlin.

Kenya is however not part of the Summit.

Compact with Africa (CwA) set up a structured partnership between volunteering African countries and the G-20 with the inclusion of key multilateral and bilateral partners and the private sector.

The twelve African nations that have so far joined the initiative include Rwanda, Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Morocco, Senegal, Togo and Tunisia.

Some member countries, such as Guinea, Benin or Togo, are too small for foreign businesses while economic heavyweights such as Kenya and Nigeria are not part of the Compact.

Speaking at this year's ongoing Summit, Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel, some countries are not transparent to potential investors and that could be the reason why they are not considered for partnerships.

"We believe that more transparency could also bring more investors into these countries, because for the investors from Germany and the G20 countries, transparency and trust are very important," Merkel said.

While speaking to Deutsche Welle (DW), one of the entrepreneurs, Karl-Heinz Knoop, who seeks to invest in Africa said his investment decisions have nothing to do with whether or not a country is a member of the Compact.

"Where are the raw materials? Where can I produce my machinery well and where can I find good employees?" he questioned.

Last week, Kenyans on Twitter reacted to Melinda Gates' meeting with President Uhuru Kenyatta by imploring her not to donate any money to Kenya, if that issue came up during their discussions.

This came after Mrs Gates tweeted about last Wednesday's meeting at State House, Nairobi. Mrs Gates shared a photo of herself and President Kenyatta at State House with the caption: "Thank you, President Kenyatta, for hosting #ICPD25 and for the great progress Kenya has made to increase access to family planning for women and girls."

Knowing that Mrs Gates is a philanthropist and also the chair of the moneyed Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Kenyans on Twitter were quick to beg her not to lend any money to the president.

President Uhuru has been on the receiving end of backlash for a while now since Kenyans don't seem to be happy about his many foreign trips that "yield to nothing tangible".